Missing for nearly a year and a half, a mother and her 10-year-old daughter were found dead in Innsbruck, Austria, in the freezer of a man in his fifties who is suspected of the double murder, as is his brother.

The bodies of a mother and her ten-year-old daughter were found in the freezer of a resident of Innsbruck, Austria. The two women, both Syrian nationals, had been missing since July 21, 2024, the local newspaper Kurier reported on Tuesday. They had been in Germany visiting relatives and had spoken to a family member. A cousin eventually reported them missing.

The last people to have seen the victims alive were two Austrian brothers, aged 53 and 55. They were among the suspects and were arrested last June. At the time, they denied any involvement in the disappearances. The investigation revealed that they had used the mother's credit card and mobile phone, and had also sold her jewelry and some of the furniture from her apartment.

Suspicious money transfers

The older brother had also received a transfer from the 34-year-old victim's account, which he justified by claiming it was the repayment of a debt. The older suspect finally confessed on November 12, revealing the location of the bodies in his brother's apartment. During the investigation, neighbors told police they had heard a little girl's voice in the apartment.

The Austrians claimed that the deaths of the mother and daughter were accidental. However, prosecutor Hansjörg Mayr explained that the leading hypothesis was that of a double murder. The cause of death may be difficult to determine because a power outage prevented the freezer from functioning and the bodies decomposed. The brothers have been remanded in custody.